Changes
by Alayna36
Summary: Erik kidnaps Christine again and takes her to Konoha. There she learns to adjust to her new life and realize that she never truly loved Raoul... Nor does she truly love Erik in the way he loves her. Christine/Kakashi, may change later at request.


Christine had awoken in an all too familiar room; the same room in which she had spent months of her life with a man whom she hoped never to see again. It had been around 3 months since she had left this place for what she thought would be the last time with her soon-to-be husband—Raoul de Chagny.

Though she wasn't thrilled at her current situation, she couldn't say that she hadn't expected it. She hoped, of course, but she knew Erik well enough to know that he wouldn't take her leaving him so quietly. The three months had given her a false sense of confidence, though, and she had almost started to believe that he had gotten over her or had died. The possibility that he had died had made her sad. Though he was a cruel and selfish man who acted more like a monster than a man half the time, she had long ago realized that she had still loved him. Raoul was like a brother to her. She adored him and he made her feel safe, but she had never felt the same passion for him as she did for Erik.

_Raoul will be coming for me soon. _She thought. Obviously Erik knew that.

_No! _The realization hit Christine like a falling chandelier. He was going to kill Raoul. She let a single tear escape her warm blue eyes.

_This is nothing but a dream… a horrible nightmare…. _She thought to herself, willing it to be true. But she knew it was not. Erik would not let her go again, that much was certain.

"Christine, my love?" She heard Erik's musical voice call out to her. She felt chills at the sound of it… As much as she wanted to, she could not hate him.

"Erik…" She was crying at this point, the sound of his voice had broken her—the undisguised longing and pleading that his voice conveyed was too much for her. But why should she sacrifice her life for this man who had tortured her mind for years? "Please…. Please, Erik, let me go!"

Erik was prepared for her begging, but it didn't make it any easier for him to bear. He loathed seeing her unhappy, but he simply could not live without her, couldn't she realize that? "I am afraid I cannot do that, dear Christine."

"No! They'll come after me, like they did last time!" She stood up looking around for the source of the voice. _But, of course, he is just using his ventriloquism again… _

"I am no fool, Christine, I am well aware of that fact. Which is why I shall be taking you where no Viscount will be able to reach you." Erik made his voice cold and emotionless, giving her no room to argue with him. "We will be leaving shortly. I have already made arrangements for us to live in a town called Konoha."

Christine considered what he had said for a long time. Though she was sure she didn't have a choice, she didn't want to gain absolutely nothing from it. "….I'll go with you…. as long as you promise not to hurt Raoul." Christine said quietly. If he would listen to nothing else she said, she prayed that she would listen to this.

"There will be no need to harm Monsieur de Chagny" Erik said in a flat monotone. There was no need for her to know that he had already dealt with de Chagny. He smirked to himself. _And how wonderful it felt to finally kill him… _

"Thank you, Erik." She exhaled in relief. At the very least, she wouldn't be responsible for the death of the man who had been her savior... even if it was only for a few months.

"Are you ready to leave, then?" Erik was impatient to leave—there _would_ be others looking for her soon and he knew could not bear to lose her again.

Christine nodded helplessly and stood up. "Yes." A few last tears escaped. "I am ready."

Christine found that she was yet again unconscious. She sighed and resolved to talk to Erik about that—it's not like she was going anywhere, not with the life of Raoul on the line. He had her completely at his mercy. This time she didn't recognize anything. She was relieved to find that she was still in the clothes that she set off in, but she wondered where she was. She remembered walking through the long and winding passages in the opera house, but she didn't remember leaving it.

As she studied her surroundings, she was surprised to find that there was a large window on one of the walls that lit up the whole room. Erik loathed windows, as well as light. To have both in her room… perhaps this wouldn't be as bad as she thought. She allowed herself a small smile. Perhaps she really could make a new life here, wherever this was. She stood up slowly and cautiously and went to her window. She was shocked to see that the window overlooked a busy street with extremely strangely dressed people. Erik hated crowds, she wondered why he would take her to such a busy place. She'd expected to be staying in a remote part of France where she would have no contact with anyone.

"What do you think?" She heard Erik's voice, excited and nervous at the possibility of making her happy.

"I don't understand..." She said, barely hiding a smile. "Where is this…? Your mask… aren't you worried you will stick out in such a busy place?" Erik chuckled as he entered the room.

"This village, Konoha, is much different from Paris." He gestured to his mask. "This is not a problem here." The joy of this news was clear in his voice. Christine could easily see why he'd chosen this place. This way, she could live a somewhat normal life and he could live it with her. She found herself smiling with him. How hard he must have looked to find such a place. But as she looked out the window again she saw that he was right. She saw several other men in masks—Erik's would not present a problem at all. Though she worry about how they were dressed. She'd never seen such strange clothing, even on stage.

"I have brought you some different clothes so you can fit in here better." He said, sensing her worry, and laying out a simple dark blue dress on the bed that wouldn't stand out so much, but that still allowed her to feel comfortable. She noticed that Erik had changed his clothes as well. He still wore a long black cloak, but it was in a different type of style so it wouldn't raise questions.

"Thank you." Christine said. She turned her head again to the window, aware that she was looking at Erik for longer than usual. Erik didn't seem to notice, but then again, he was an actor. Christine could not help but notice that she was starting to fall for Erik yet again. _No… I can't do that to myself… or to him… again. Whenever I fall in love it causes everyone involved nothing but pain. It's better if I keep my distance… That and…. _She glanced at Erik again, his face hidden by his black mask, _I don't know if I can ever forgive him for the pain he has caused me… and Raoul._

"Christine?" Erik said, taking her away from her thoughts.

"Yes?" She replied.

"It's unfortunate, but I'm afraid there is going to be a language barrier for you here." He said regretfully. Christine narrowed her eyes. She knew Erik well enough to know that he had known about this before they arrived. She sighed, knowing there was nothing she could do. And Erik did sound sorry... "The language spoken here, Japanese, is nothing like our native language so it may take some time for you to pick it up." He said apologetically. "I shall teach it to you, you will learn soon enough."

Christine sighed. This was most likely a precaution to keep her from leaving him any time soon, but she nodded in agreement.

"Tomorrow I shall show you around the village, would you like that, dear Christine?" Erik asked, at this point desperate to please her.

"Yes, I would." She said, giving Erik a small smile. Even with all that he's done to her, she still couldn't bear to see him miserable.

"I'll leave you to get some rest, then. Tomorrow I shall begin your voice lessons again, as well as lessons in the language spoken here." Erik turned to leave, sighing a bit. He didn't know how he was going to get Christine to ever forgive him for all that he'd done to her… Yet he couldn't bring himself to regret it. He was so glad to just have her with him. That was enough for him, for now. She would learn to love him again in time. He closed the door behind him and was tempted to lock it, just in case Christine had any ideas of leaving, but thought better of it. After all, where would she go? She had no idea where she was, nor did she have any way of communicating with anyone around here. Yes, it was a good idea to bring her here. Tomorrow they would begin their life together.


End file.
